Author: manshipxgr

Published: June 4,2024

By: Jordyn Wilson, LSU Manship School News Service

BATON ROUGE–The Legislature gave final approval Monday to a bill that would allow surgical castration of convicted rapists and pedophiles whose victims are under age 13.

Under the bill, SB 371, judges would have the option to assess the penalty against people convicted of aggravated rape, aggravated crime against nature or aggravated incestuous crime.

Any surgery would be conducted inside the prisons by a doctor supplied by the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, and the court would have to find the defendant to be suitable for castration at least 60 days before treatment.

Read more at WWNO or Daily Advertiser.

Published: June 3, 2024

By:Maddie Scott, LSU Manship School News Service

BATON ROUGE – The House voted Thursday to create a subcommittee to study the makeup of the state’s music industry ecosystem and its economic impact.

Authored by Rep. Paula Davis, R-Baton Rouge, House Resolution 294 passed 95-0.

The resolution says the subcommittee would make recommendations by next Feb. 1 for policy and legislative changes to promote the development of a self-supporting industry.

Read more at Daily Advertiser.

Published: June 3, 2024

By: Elizabeth White, LSU Manship School News Service

BATON ROUGE – The Senate on Thursday gave final approval to a stripped-down version of one of Gov. Jeff Landry’s biggest priorities — a move toward education savings accounts that could provide state money to parents who want to send their children to private schools.

Senators voted 23-14 to concur with House changes to a bill that would authorize education officials to consider the accounts. But the compromise version would delay the implementation of the plan and make it easier for the Legislature to scale back the funding.

State officials and private experts had estimated that Landry’s original plan eventually would have cost taxpayers $300 million to $500 million a year. Some lawmakers were concerned about the cost since the state will lose several hundred million in revenue when part of the state sales tax expires next year.

Read more at Daily Advertiser.

Published: June 3, 2024

By: Elizabeth White, LSU Manship School News Service

BATON ROUGE – The Legislature gave its final approval Sunday to $48 billion in budget bills, restoring funding for a $2,000 stipend for teachers but cutting spending on early childhood education programs.

The House had previously cut the level of the teacher stipends. But the Senate restored the full amount that Gov. Jeff Landry had proposed, and the House voted Sunday to concur.

Read more at Daily Advertiser.

Published: June 2, 2024

By: Elizabeth White

BATON ROUGE, La. — The Legislature gave its final approval Sunday to $48 billion in budget bills, restoring funding for a $2,000 stipend for teachers but cutting spending on early childhood education programs.

The House had previously cut the level of the teacher stipends. But the Senate restored the full amount that Gov. Jeff Landry had proposed, and the House voted Sunday to concur.

Read more at 4WWL.

Published: May 31, 2024

By: Maddie Scott, LSU Manship School News Service

BATON ROUGE–The House voted Thursday to create a subcommittee to study the makeup of the state’s music industry ecosystem and its economic impact.

Authored by Rep. Paula Davis, R-Baton Rouge, House Resolution 294 passed 95-0.

The resolution says the subcommittee would make recommendations by next Feb. 1 for policy and legislative changes to promote the development of a self-supporting industry.

Read more at The Times Houma.

Published: May 31, 2024

By: Elizabeth White, LSU Manship School News Service

BATON ROUGE, La. – The Senate on Thursday gave final approval to a stripped-down version of one of Gov. Jeff Landry’s biggest priorities—a move toward education savings accounts that could provide state money to parents who want to send their children to private schools. 

Senators voted 23-14 to concur with House changes to a bill that would authorize education officials to consider the accounts. But the compromise version would delay the implementation of the plan and make it easier for the Legislature to scale back the funding. 

State officials and private experts had estimated that Landry’s original plan would have eventually cost taxpayers $300 million to $500 million a year. Some lawmakers were concerned about the cost since the state will lose several hundred million in revenue when part of the state sales tax expires next year. 

Read more at KTBS.

Published: May 23, 2024

By: Maddie Scott, LSU Manship School News Service

BATON ROUGE–Lawmakers are adding back some of the money for public school teacher stipends next year, and they gave final approval Thursday to bills that would ban gender discussions and COVID-19 vaccines in schools. 

The Senate Finance Committee restored $33 million for teacher stipends Wednesday evening after the House had cut the funds last month. The money was added back into next year’s budget in response to recent projections that tax revenues will increase in fiscal 2025, which starts July 1.

Read more at Minden Press-Herald.

Published: May 22, 2024

By: Maddie Scott, LSU Manship School News Service

BATON ROUGE, La. — A Senate bill that would have required heating and air-conditioning systems in school buses failed on the Louisiana House floor Tuesday. 

The House rejected the measure 42-57 after nearly 1 ½ hours of debate.  

Senate Bill 26 would have required the systems on every school bus bought on and after Aug 1, 2024. The bill would have also required all school buses to be equipped with them in 2027. 

Read more at 4WWL.